Questionable Medicine

From foot X-ray machines and Victorian vibrators to radioactive tonics and lobotomies, this episode dives into the weird world of questionable medical treatments and the history of health fads that definitely didn’t age well.

Join Jess and special guest Kate as they explore the bizarre side of medicine — including a shocking look at the Relax-A-Cizor, a guessing game of “Cure or Crap,” and the deeply tragic story of Rosemary Kennedy’s lobotomy. We’ll cover historical quackery, outdated medical beliefs, and the surprising overlap between science and pseudoscience.

Whether you’re curious about old medical devices, strange cures, or just want to hear about the time people were prescribed goat testicles, this episode has something for every history nerd, true crime of medicine fan, or podcast junkie with a love for the absurd.

Caution: may cause side effects such as laughter, cringing, side-eye, and a deep mistrust of Victorian physicians.

Sources: Smithsonian Magazine, The Science Museum of Minnesota, NPR, Mental Floss, History.com, The Atlantic, BBC, Radiolab, ScienceDirect, The Kennedy Family Archives, National Institutes of Health (NIH), Journal of the History of Medicine and Allied Sciences, FDA.gov, and various academic papers and archived medical texts via JSTOR and PubMed. Special thanks to reddit user "WalkThat", and, of course, thank you to my  wittily winsome sister Kate — your wit, heart, and hilarious reactions made this episode so much better.

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